Phil Henrickson
henry "hank" mccoy • beast
I'm a cute li'l furry freak whose only friends
are other freaks. Of course, all of them
can pass as human when they like.
Is it any wonder I sometimes get the blues?
That wasn't meant to be a pun.
Philip Henrickson was a miracle baby; a miracle in the sense that his mother and father, Nora and Edwin Henrickson, had been trying and failing for years to conceive a child before he came along. They had given up on the possibility of kids to the point where they adopted a toddler named Martin. It had been a couple of years when Philip, a surprisingly big, surprisingly tan baby for a couple as pale as Nora and Edwin, was born. Edwin was no angel, and he wasn't the brightest man, so he never really put two and two together. The Henricksons were not people of means, barely making ends meet and keeping the lights on in their cramped Dorchester apartment. But somehow, they made due.

That is, until tragedy struck. Philly was a good kid. Smart. Mostly on the straight and narrow. Marty, on the other hand, was something else. He ran with gangs based out of the projects nearby. While he wasn't grooming Philly to be the same, the kid looked up to his older brother and his best friend Lou. Philly liked Lou; for every minute Marty spent talking about how badass he was and how much money he was going to pull from his thug life, Lou spent two minutes telling Philly to hit the books and keep his nose clean. Marty had gotten into fights all the time, but one day he never came home. Somehow, the kid messed with the wrong person, and a single gunshot to Marty's chest did him in.

Losing their adopted son was too much for Nora and Edwin to bear. Edwin turned to drinking. Nora checked out emotionally. It was a matter of a few miserable months before Nora decide to take Philip away from Edwin, Lou, Boston, and the pain of loss and heartache. In theory, anyway. Nothing could really do that. Edwin didn't follow as she packed up her old blue Pontiac Bonneville and headed west, eventually ending up in Clovis, in California's San Joaquin Valley.

It was clear to his teachers in Clovis that Philip was a prodigious intellect, whose thirst for knowledge had been largely ignored by his educators in Boston. He was prone to bouts of frustration, which would lead to anger and acting out. In the new, positive learning environment Clovis had to offer, he flourished. Philly thrived in learning new things, particularly in the sciences. He took advantage of arts programs to learn to play the piano, and paint. His mom met another man, and while she wasn’t looking to get married again, she was happy. That was good enough.

Puberty kicked off one hell of a growth spurt, and he started playing football in high school. By the time he graduated high school he was an NFF National High School Scholar-Athlete Award winner, had been scouted by a number of Division I football teams, and had found a profound interest in genetics. Philip had wrestled with existential questions about why he differed so much from everyone else in his mother's family photos (he sorted out infidelity on his own, since his mother never copped to it), and marveled at the amazing biodiversity of the human species. The building blocks of evolution and how it mutated and changed in response to stimuli was absolutely fascinating.

Of all the schools that offered him packages of scholastic and athletic scholarships, he decided on UC Berkeley. While it wasn’t the strongest football school interested in his services, it was definitely the one with the most robust academic offerings for genetics and cellular biology. At Berkeley, he had some challenges fitting in. He was far too focused on academics for the "ball is life" football crowd, and the academics dismissed him as a meathead because of his wild appearance and physique.

During his four years at Berkeley, one thing became crystal clear to Philip: football was not going to be his life. Sure, the possibility for riches and fame were there, but that was never something he strove for. But he had read eye-opening studies into Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy. He wanted to make a real difference in people's lives and to apply his intellect for the betterment of humanity. Permanent brain damage was a very real possibility, and continuing to play football just wasn't worth it. So he opted out of the NFL draft, much to the chagrin to a number of scouts and agents that had come calling.

He dove head first into academics. He had his choice of schools after earning his bachelor's in genetics, genomics, and development (GGD). He opted for Stanford University. Without the distraction and grueling schedule he had to keep because of his football commitments, he was free to delve into study and research. Philip had friends and girlfriends, but never any serious relationships. He was far too independent and far too focused on the books, and nobody wanted to come second.

Most of Philip's twenties were spent in school. Schools. At Stanford, he earned dual masters in genetics and biomedical engineering. In 2006, he returned to Boston to begin Harvard University's Biological and Biomedical Sciences (BBS) PhD program. His thesis research focused on a better understanding of deploying hematopoietic stem cells to better understand and potentially slow the cellular aging process.

After earning his PhD, his first job was an epidemiologist with the Massachusetts Department of Public Health. Philip was drawn to the idea of working with the school system and youth population in order to improve the city's overall health. He established a number of connections with public and private entities. As the months went by, he grew increasingly frustrated with bureaucracy and counter-productive processes. Halfway into his second year of employment, an argument with his superior that began simply enough escalated to angry yelling and physical separation being necessary.

The incident was troubling for his employer, but even more for him. After taking some time off for reflection, and meeting with a therapist to talk through some anger issues, Philip decided to tender his resignation. He was soon inundated with job offers, and after a considerable bake-off accepted an offer from Eisai's Human Genetics and Pharmacogenomics department.

Barely a year has gone by, and he's had enough. Philip's experience with Eisai has basically been the opposite of what he'd experience in the public sector. The focus was on the bottom line, by any means necessary. And while he has never been asked to do anything ethically questionable, he fears it's just a matter of time. So he's on the lookout for his next opportunity, personally and professionally.

name Philip "Philly" Henrickson comicverse Beast • Henry " Hank" McCoy date of birth (age) April 1, 1982 (35) birthplace Dorchester, Boston, MA current residence Jamaica Plain, Boston, MA occupation Associate Principal Scientist,
Eisai Inc.
relationship status Single AF
Henry "Hank" McCoy was born and raised in Dunfee, Illinois, the son of Norton and Edna McCoy. His father worked at a nuclear power plant where he was exposed to massive amounts of radiation during an accident. Norton was completely unharmed, but the radiation affected his genes and, as a result, his son was born a mutant. Unlike most mutants, Henry showed signs of mutation from birth: unusually large hands and feet. A prodigy, Hank was also endowed with an innate superhuman intellect and during adolescence he gained the power of simian-like augmented agility, reflexes, and strength.

While attending Bard College, thanks to his powers, Henry became a star football player as a teenager and earned the nickname Magilla Gorilla. Hank's remarkable athletic abilities and brilliance attracted the notice of Professor Charles Xavier, who was forming the original X-Men. Xavier offered Hank, who excelled in the classroom, the chance for unlimited academic opportunities at his prestigious School for Gifted Youngsters. Under Prof. Xavier's tutelage, Hank's days were rich with differential equations, Proust, and workouts in the Danger Room. [Source]

powers Superhuman Strength
Superhuman Speed
Superhuman Stamina
Superhuman Durability
Superhuman Agility
Regenerative Healing Factor
Superhuman Senses
Minor Pheromone Manipulation
Razor-Sharp Claws and Fangs
Genius Intelligence
Excellent Hand to Hand Combatant
Multilingual
Expert Tactician
Indomitable Will
comic parallels Similar names (Philip is Hank's middle name)
Similar parent names
College Football Star
Prodigious, Genius Intellect
A man of arts and letters and sciences
Scientist focusing on genetics and mutations
Brutish exterior, but witty and eloquent
education BS genetics, genomics, and development
University of California at Berkeley

MS Human Genetics
MS Bioengineering
Stanford University

PhD Biological and Biomedical Sciences
Harvard University

personality Philip is a genuinely good person. He is an optimistic man, generous and compassionate. A strong work ethic and reliability combine with a patience in the face of unpleasantness to create a sort of dogged determination. Easy with a joke. On the flip side, Phil tends to repress his feelings. Avarice and self-serving behavior, particularly at the expense of others, tends to trigger an angry response in him. He is altrusitic, almost to a fault, and has trouble asking for and accepting help.

Interests and Likes Playing the piano and guitar. Painting. Attending performing arts events. Puns that make people groan. Classic rock. Indie music. Outdoor sports. Used bookstores. Craft beer. Cheat days.
connections